OHANEZE WELCOMES FASHOLA'S APOLOGY, UNVEILS PLANS FOR 2013 IGBO DAY

APC Begs Anambrarians To Accept Apology

OHANAEZE Ndigbo, Lagos State chapter, Friday said the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN) “did very well” in a apologising to Ndigbo over the deportation of some citizens to their state of origin, Anambra, recently.
  This is as the All Progressives Congress (APC), Southeast zone, has appealed to Ndigbo and Anambrarians in particular to forgive and forget the incident following Fashola’s apology.
  Addressing a press conference at its Ikeja office to announce the programmes for this year’s Igbo Day Celebration holding on October 5, 2013, at the Basket Ball Pitch, National Stadium, Surulere at 10a.m., president of the socio-cultural organisation, Chief Oliver Akubueze said Fashola’s apology serves as an assurance that he would not repeat the action in future.

 He said: “When somebody does something wrong and pressure is mounted on him to have a re-think on what he has done, the right thing for the person to do is to either apologise or to keep to what he has done. Fashola did very well by apologising to the Igbos; all we were fighting to achieve was for him not to repeat what he had done. We don’t want it anymore. His apology has come a long way to deliver a message to us that it will not happen again. That was just what we wanted. We were not trying to fight him; we were not trying to do any other thing than to let him know that he had done us wrong and we wouldn’t want that to happen again.”
  Akubueze said the Igbo Day Celebration, which will hold with the theme ‘Kwadoo Asusu Igbo’ (support Igbo language) would be attended by the governors of the South-East states and Governor Serieke Dickson of Bayelsa State.
  He added that the event would be used to raise N200 million for the construction of an Igbo Language Support Centre, which would be like a school where Igbo sons and daughters shall be learning Igbo language, culture and values.
  
“The celebration will also be used to showcase our rich cultural heritage, values, fashion and food. It will also serve as a point of interaction amongst Igbos and non-Igbos in Lagos State,” he said.
  APC appealed to Ndigbo to put the matter behind them, especially those who wittingly or unwittingly are transferring the aggression on Senator Chris Ngige’s bid to return to Anambra State government to complete the good works he started.
  In a statement through the Zonal Publicity Secretary, Osita Okechukwu, South-East APC warned that the mistake of some Lagos State government officials should not be used to deny Anambrarians the golden opportunity to elect Senator Ngige to complete his blue print.
  It maintained that Anambrians must be weary of the money mongers and big bankers whose only manifesto is propaganda and whose only interest is profit motive.
  “Ngige, we must recall, opened our eyes to what prudent management of state revenue can achieve. Before then the governors only share money and abandon projects. He did 20 per cent of his blueprint, Governor Obi did seven per cent and we need Ngige to complete it for the interest of future generations. It is also germane to note the roads Ngige tarred years ago are more durable than that of Governor Obi,” APC said. The Guardian reports.